SEOUL, Nov. 9 (Korea Bizwire) — Local governments across South Korea recorded steep budget deficits last year due to increased spending to cope with COVID-19, the interior ministry said Tuesday. According to an analysis by the ministry, the consolidated fiscal balance of 243 local governments for the fiscal year of 2020 recorded a deficit of [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 3 (Korea Bizwire) — The upcoming Chuseok holiday, the Korean equivalent of Thanksgiving and one of the country’s most celebrated holidays, is posing a significant hurdle to health authorities struggling to contain the fourth wave of COVID-19. This year’s three-day Chuseok holiday runs from Sept. 20-22, and it will be extended by an [...]
SEOUL, July 20 (Korea Bizwire) — Public shade canopies, water spraying trucks and ice-cold water bottles are being mobilized and supplied plentifully across South Korea this week, as an extended nationwide heat wave compounds woes of local governments already burdened with having to deal with the fourth wave of COVID-19. The country remains gripped by [...]
SEOUL, June 21 (Korea Bizwire) — Local governments outside of the greater Seoul area are on high alert for a possible resurgence of COVID-19, as eased social distancing rules focused on lifting the cap on private gatherings will take effect next month. In line with the nation’s rising vaccination rate, the central government has announced [...]
SEOUL, March 22 (Korea Bizwire) — Wary of possible quarantine loopholes, local governments across the country are struggling to discourage picnickers from visiting spring flower hot spots in their districts, following their recent decisions to cancel or downsize annual spring blossom festivals. Almost all spring blossom festivals nationwide have been called off or will be [...]
SEOUL, Feb. 1 (Korea Bizwire) — Many local governments in South Korea are gearing up to resume the provision of universal disaster relief funds to their residents stricken by the prolonged coronavirus pandemic. Gyeonggi Province, the nation’s most populous province with about 14 million residents, and Ulsan, a southeastern metropolitan city, began the process of [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 8 (Korea Bizwire) — A declining population is leading local authorities to come up with new policies as the plunging birth rate threatens to undermine the competitiveness of a number of cities, and could even lead to their dissolution. The southeastern city of Changwon is stepping up to offer special loans to stimulate the [...]
SEOUL, July 23 (Korea Bizwire) — Local governments are turning to parks, shaded areas under bridges and hotels in their latest attempt to provide elderly citizens relief from sweltering summer heat while keeping new coronavirus infection risks low. Every summer, local community centers for the elderly are converted into air-conditioned cooling centers as daytime highs [...]
SEOUL, July 18 (Korea Bizwire) — Several local governments are again planning to dole out pandemic relief funds to help their residents cope with the economic impact of the coronavirus outbreak, informed officials said Saturday. The government of Daegu, the city hit hard by a massive COVID-19 outbreak months earlier, announced a plan earlier this [...]
GOYANG, March 23 (Korea Bizwire) — With the massive spread of the new coronavirus expected to alter life as we know it for the foreseeable future, local governments in Gyeonggi Province are pushing for various measures to support and promote consumption. The city of Goyang will temporarily hire local students and children of small business [...]